Domestic Violence Volunteer Training Inside the Courtroom

KENNEWICK, Wash.-- Domestic violence crimes are among some of the most common ones for police to deal with.

On Monday night close to 20 volunteers from Domestic Violence Services in Benton and Franklin counties got the details on how DV calls are handled.

Judge Hollenbeck opened up his courtroom for volunteers to hear from police what it's like, when they're initially called out to the scene, but also from prosecutor and defense attorneys who take care of the paperwork.

"I think it's excellent to be part of the training so people know what's happening, rather than just seeing one side of it," said Elaine Korenko, a volunteer.

"Every family is different and we want to be able to understand their situation and help them resolve it, we're not here to separate families we're here to try to keep families together," said Cindy Keaton, another volunteer.

Volunteers play a very important role in making sure everyone involved in a DV situation comes out safe. Police say these cases are hard to respond to and even more difficult when children are involved.